The science of becoming a better wife and mother.

My intention is not to turn this into a money blog so please stick with me while I get myself back in the habit of writing weekly. Hopefully along the way you will learn something new or find one of these tips useful. And if there is something you would like me to write about (money or otherwise) leave a comment and let me know!

Money Tip #2: Track your spending. I use Mint which is a free online service (they suggest financial products and earn commissions if/when you decide to use suggested products). I also recently signed up for Personal Capital which I believe is similar though I haven’t spent much time in my account yet. Of course there is always an Excel spreadsheet that can be customized as basic or as fancy as you want. Here is a quick tutorial.

When you track your spending for the first time:
1. You’ll probably discover you spend a LOT on food…or clothes…or some other category. That’s good to know for the next point.
2. It allows you to make changes. You can’t decrease the amount you spend on wrist watches if you don’t realize you’re spending $500/month on them.

So give it a go. Sign up for a free account or open up a spreadsheet and start tracking. Then do me a huge favor and come back and comment about what surprised you the most about this exercise. If you already track your spending leave a comment and share what your experience was like early on.